Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) Hits New 1-Year High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Hope Bancorp shares hit a new 52-week high on Monday, briefly trading as high as $13.25 before settling near $13.23.
• Analyst sentiment has improved, with recent upgrades and higher price targets leading to a consensus Hold rating and an average target price of $14.50.
• The company recently beat quarterly EPS estimates by $0.01, and it also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, implying a 4.3% annual yield.

Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $13.25 and last traded at $13.2280, with a volume of 376 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $13.19.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HOPE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Zacks Research raised Hope Bancorp from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. DA Davidson increased their target price on Hope Bancorp from $14.50 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Hope Bancorp from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Hope Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Brean Capital upgraded Hope Bancorp from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hope Bancorp has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $14.50.

Hope Bancorp Stock Down 0.6%

The stock has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.20 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $12.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $11.77.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.01. Hope Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.32% and a net margin of 6.56%.The firm had revenue of $133.82 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $145.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.17 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Hope Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hope Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. Hope Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 107.69%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Daisy Y. Ha sold 12,000 shares of Hope Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.53, for a total transaction of $150,360.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 373,115 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,675,130.95. The trade was a 3.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.27% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hope Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rhino Investment Partners Inc increased its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 29.8% in the third quarter. Rhino Investment Partners Inc now owns 1,896,501 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $20,425,000 after buying an additional 435,165 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC raised its stake in Hope Bancorp by 159.4% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 189,175 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,073,000 after purchasing an additional 116,252 shares during the period. UBS Group AG raised its stake in Hope Bancorp by 73.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,972,716 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,621,000 after purchasing an additional 835,814 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Hope Bancorp by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,195,059 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,411,000 after purchasing an additional 188,182 shares during the period. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in Hope Bancorp by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 499,967 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,385,000 after purchasing an additional 67,742 shares during the period. 84.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hope Bancorp

Hope Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Hope Bank, a California-chartered financial institution serving small and middle-market businesses, professionals and affluent individuals. The company's principal activities include accepting a variety of deposit products—such as checking accounts, savings and money market accounts, and time deposits—and extending commercial credit facilities. With a focus on community banking, Hope Bancorp tailors its offerings to meet the needs of clients in diverse industries, including real estate, professional services and import/export trade.

In its lending business, Hope Bancorp provides commercial real estate loans, construction financing, working capital lines of credit and equipment financing.

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